Once Upon a Time
by Crazy Cherries
Summary: It begins with once upon a time, like most stories do. But it's a sad little story, about a fairy tale that will never come true. But they can try. Hiatus
1. Prologue

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**Once Upon a Time**

* * *

><p>This is how all stories begin right? "Once upon a time" and they all end with "Happily ever after" don't they?<p>

Well, let me tell you a story, then.

Once upon a time there was a team. You could call them a family (even though they weren't blood related) because all they really had was each other.

Now, there was a dad, two brothers, a sister. There was no mother, but they were fine without one.

They didn't need one.

They were complete all on their own.

The two boys on that team were rivals, but they were best friends too (even if they wouldn't admit it to anyone, let alone themselves). They were brothers; they had each other's backs.

They'd made one promise (it was the one thing they could agree on). And that promise was to forever protect their third teammate.

No matter what they would keep her safe. No. Matter. What.

They both loved her, she was innocent and sweet. She wasn't tainted like them and she would stay that way. They would make sure of it.

So they put her above themselves.

Even the "father" was (unofficially) in on it, because he wanted her to stay happy. He wanted her to keep smiling.

Others said what they strived for was impossible; but they said even so, it was their dream. And as long as they had each other, that dream would become a reality.

But one boy left.

He shattered that dream.

He broke that promise.

Now their story won't end in "Happily ever after" even if it began with "Once upon a time".

* * *

><p><em>This is kind of just a rough prologue.<em>

_Yes, I am going to update my other stories. Eventually._

_Review and let me know what you think/any ideas you have._

_(I made this for my birthday, so happy birthday to me!)_


	2. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**Once Upon a Time**

* * *

><p><em>They were complete…<em>

.

Morning.

Ramen Stand.

.

"Hey! Where are you going? The ramen stand's this way!"

"And…?" The woman kept walking, not looking back at the man who was now trailing after her like a lost puppy. This happened every single day.

"And aren't you coming with me?" The blond pouted, knowing very well how this was going to end.

"No."

He began whining, "But why?"

She sighed, "Because."

"Because why?"

"Because I said so!"

"Because you said so why?"

.

Five Hours Later.

Hospital.

Naruto.

.

"Ugh, what happened?" Naruto woke up groggy, rubbing his head, he looked around confused. He was in a sterile white room that smelled like antiseptic. Gross. But he recognized this room, it was known as his room since he was in the hospital almost every day. Between Sakura, missions, and his own stupidity, he was surprised that he wasn't being forced to move in here for good.

"She beat you up. You blacked out." He looked over to where there was a nurse standing at the foot of his bed, looking through his charts.

"So it's nothing new, then?"

"Nope." She said, popping the p in 'nope.'

"Does this mean I can go now?" He asked, looking out the window near his bed, he never did get his ramen.

"Yup, but I highly suggest you stop irritating her. You don't want to get any dumber, Naruto. It's bad for your health, you'll get beat up more."

"Heh, I'll try, but Sakura likes being mean to me. I think I'm her stress-reliever monkey."

"I think you're also her stress-causer monkey."

"Hey! I resent that!" He started laughing, and the nurse laughed with him.

"Perhaps you should go have your daily dose of ramen Naruto. It'll help you more than all the drugs in the world."

He grinned and waved at the nurse before heading out, and with his hands resting on the back of his head; he made a bee-line for the ramen stand. The nurse was right; ramen did help him function a lot better.

He spent way too much time in the hospital anyway, it was nice to get out and smell the ramen.

.

Hospital.

Sakura.

.

The pink haired woman sighed. Patients, patients, paperwork, and patients. Her day would be spent in a blur of different, usually careless patients. Really, who in their right mind would voluntarily try to play with a snake? She could understand if it was a kid, but no this guy was thirty-five.

The civilians were getting stupider.

The ninja were getting cockier (thus they were also getting stupider).

Was it too much to ask for them to be careful?

A knock interrupted her internal rampage.

"Sakura, I sent Naruto away. He seemed restless without his intake of ramen and he had no concussion… this time."

"Well that's good; I don't need him on my endless list of people to heal." She quickly picked up the top ten more manila folders with the patients histories and began looking through the first one as she headed out of her office and down the hall. She'd already made it half-way through the stack.

"You really should be more careful with him or one day he'll end up like Humpty Dumpty."

She laughed, "I don't think Naruto would allow even me to hurt him that far. Plus he's not an egg. We'll be able to put him back together again."

"You know… it's funny how they never mention that Humpty's an egg, for all we know he could have been someone like Naruto, with way too many hits on the noggin."

She laughed once again, "Naruto will be fine, he always is." and with that, she headed into her next patient's room.

"Perhaps you shouldn't lean on him too much Sakura; you're beginning to take advantage of him." The nurse said it softly, knowing she would hear it, before continuing on her way to discharge other lucky patients. Her next stop was a particularly grumpy dog-lover who was just a bit too much like Naruto for his own good.

Sakura sighed and went on with her work, maybe the nurse was right, but this was something she'd think of later, when she had time… and she didn't have time until she was discharged for the day.

.

Three hours later.

.

She spent way too much time in the hospital, it was nice to get out and smell the fresh air.

Even she agreed to what Naruto believed about the hospital smelling too much like medicine.

As she walked down the familiar paths of Konoha, she thought about what the nurse said. It was true, she realized, everyone always leaned on Naruto to the point of taking advantage of him.

Everyone expected something more of Naruto.

Everyone expected him to be their sun.

And it wasn't fair to him because he was so busy making others happy, well no one knew if Naruto was happy or not.

Unconsciously, her feet had taken her to the ramen stand where she found a sweaty Naruto eating a late lunch with Kakashi.

"Kakashi, what have I told you about reading your perverted books while eating a meal?"

Both men turned to find Sakura with her hands on her hips and a disapproving expression on her face.

"Sakura, I hope you can see that I'm not eating a meal, I've finished."

"Well were you eating and reading your porn at the same time?"

"He was!" Naruto exclaimed, jumping out of his seat.

"Naruto!" Sakura backed away to avoid the food bits that had tumbled out of his mouth, "Chew first, talk second."

The man, she couldn't believe he wasn't a boy anymore, nodded, swallowed and said again, "He was!"

"Thanks for the support Naruto." Kakashi said lazily, not even bothering to defend himself.

Sakura pet Naruto on the head, she could only do this when he was sitting and she was standing ever since he'd gotten taller than her.

Then she took a seat next to him and ordered her own meal.

"How many bowls are you on?"

"Seven."

"How many bowls did you get after you were released?"

"Five."

"How many more do you plan on eating?" Her eyes narrowed, she was always nagging him on his ramen eating habits.

"One?"

"Good answer." She smiled and dug into her ramen.

No one spoke of the empty seat on Sakura's other side.

_But now they are broken._

* * *

><p><em>So… chapter one up! Let me know how you like this?<em>

_I'm trying to keep them in character but let me know if I'm doing a poor job of it._

_This is the first time I'm writing a story that's half in Naruto's POV, so let me know of any errors that I'm making on his part._

_As for Not a Fairy Tale, I'm going to reread it (for the next chapter, I'm going to be tying things up and I want to get my facts absolutely right)._

_And as for Mission of a Lifetime, I'm going to write the next chapter as soon as I put this one up._

_Remember to review!_


	3. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**Once Upon a Time**

* * *

><p><em>Being happy was simple, easy…<em>

.

Afternoon.

Ramen Stand.

Naruto.

.

"So Sakura are you done for the day? Do you wanna train with me and Kakashi? We can team up on him. Or we can do a three way. Or we can both verse you. Or-" He was bouncing up and down in his seat, he knew that, but he couldn't stop. He was so excited, Sakura almost never trained or even ate ramen with them anymore. Usually she was really busy at the hospital.

Sakura laughed at his over-enthusiasm, "Sure, of course Naruto." For a second, though, he caught a glint of something in her eyes, he didn't know what it was but it wasn't a happy emotion. Maybe sorrow? Disappointment? Maybe she felt guilty?

But then he saw her eyes flick to the chair beside her before quickly shifting back to him and he understood. She was remembering… remembering about how there would be another teammate sitting there. A man with onyx eyes and hair. A man with a pale face.

A man who was once his best friend, his brother. A man who, no matter how much he denied it, still was (and always would be) his best friend, his brother.

"Hey, you guys got ramen without me? I feel unloved."

"That's because you are unloved Sai. Right Sakura?"

"I thought you didn't want our love?" Sakura had her hands on her hips again and she was looking at Sai through narrow eyes.

"So why are you here Sai? You hate ramen."

"I don't hate ramen. I just don't think it's good for you."

"Get to the point Sai." Sakura's tapping her foot and giving him an evil look, although all of us can tell it's not real.

Sai shoves his hair out of his face and grins.

He looks a lot like Sasuke… he looks like a washed out cheap copy, though. Like someone tried to clone him but failed to do so properly.

"Well ugly, to 'get to the point,' I was wondering if you guys wanted to train? I'm bored and Yamato has things to do."

"Alright, let's go do this." Kakashi interrupts before Sakura and Sai can get into another fight, "Sakura, you fight with Naruto. I've got Sai. Let's head to the field."

"Fine." They both huff and cross their arms.

Naruto just sighs and puts his hands behind his head and continues to walk behind them, staring up at the sky. It's nice out, not a cloud in the sky. Shikamaru won't be happy about that, he muses absentmindedly as he follows, uncharacteristically silent, glancing back once at the seat that Sakura had also been looking at.

Things changed way too fast.

.

Sakura.

.

"Hurry up Naruto! I'm waiting." The girl shoves her hair back and pulls on her gloves as Naruto jogs up the last few feet.

"I'm here Sakura! What's the rush?"

"I wanna be done before sunset." She looks around her and rubs her arms as if it's already dark. She could do missions at night, but Konoha just had a creepy feeling to it at night. She couldn't explain what she meant by this. When she was little she loved wandering the streets at night. Konoha was a totally different place at night, but what once comforted her now worried her.

Perhaps because she'd seen so much bloodshed.

Perhaps because he left in the night… but no, she didn't think about that. She tried not to think about him at all. It only caused her, and everyone around her, pain.

"Alright," Naruto grinned, "but I'm not gonna go easy on you Sakura. Just because you're a girl doesn't mean you deserve special treatment."

"ARE YOU SAYING I CAN'T BEAT YOU OTHERWISE? Be prepared for a world of hurt Naruto!" She could tell he wasn't worried, but he would be soon.

"Let's do this."

.

Two hours later.

.

"Do you know where Kakashi and Sai are?" Sakura asked.

They were both panting, leaning against one of the huge trees bordering the field.

"Probably in the forest. For some reason they like fighting in there."

"More places to hide and strategize. Unlike in an open field where you know where your opponent is at all times."

"Unless they hide in the ground."

"That's different."

"Is not."

"Is too."

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Is not and I won so there."

"Is too and you lost! I won."

"Nu-uh."

"Uh-huh."

"Nu-uh."

"Uh-huh."

"Why is it that whenever I walk up to you two, you're always in some foolish fight?"

Both look up to see Kakashi standing upside down on a branch in the tree they were both leaning against. Sai was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Sai?"

"Buried somewhere in the forest, why?"

"Kakashi! You can't just leave him there."

"He'll get out eventually."

Naruto was rolling around on the floor, trying to get his breath. He was laughing so hard his face was the color of Sakura's hair.

"Come on Naruto, we're going in there to rescue him."

"Why?"

"Because I said so, that's why."

"Because you said so why?"

"DO YOU WANT TO END UP BACK IN THE HOSPITAL?"

"No?"

"Then come on." She pulled him up and they both headed into the forest.

Kakashi was chuckling on the tree branch, and he called out behind them, "You know, Naruto, they should have a limit as to how many times you're admitted."

"Or I should just move in there." He muttered under his breath, following Sakura. The woman was crazy, in his opinion.

"What was that Naruto?"

"Nothing."

"Hey Sai! You in here?" She called over and over as Naruto poked branches and bushes (and occasionally animals that would then attack him) with the huge stick he found.

"Hey Ugly, Di-"

"Don't even start with that." Naruto growled and poked Sai with the stick.

"Ow!"

Naruto smirked with success as he looked down at Sai.

Sakura giggled.

All that was visible of Sai was his head. He was buried from the neck down.

"What did he do to you?" Naruto asked, nudging Sai's head with his foot, rather than the stick, which he'd thrown into the forest.

Sai aimed a bite at the foot nudging his head.

"Hey!" Naruto cried, outraged.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. That foot has been in the mud and it's sweaty. And it's Naruto's foot. Why would you want to put that in your mouth?"

"Good point. Help me out?"

"HEY! My foot is wonderful. A lot of people would give a lot of money to kiss it."

"Name one person." Sakura grunted as she pulled Sai out of the ground by his ears.

"Ow."

"Um…"

"Didn't think so."

The trio started walking back, Sai on one side, Naruto on the other, with Sakura in the middle.

Sai's hands swung back and forth.

Sakura's were clasped behind her back.

Naruto's were clasped behind his head.

"You know," she said, breaking the silence between the three, "Kakashi did that to Sasuke when we had our first training session with him, you remember Naruto? The bell test?"

"Yeah, I remember the bell test." There was a fond look on his face.

"Well I found Sasuke like that, froze, thought his head got chopped off, and I fainted. Right there."

The three laughed at the way Sakura reacted.

"I was stupid back then."

"You're stupid now, Ugly."

Sakura punched him in the arm before continuing, "You know, he never left my side, after he got out. He stayed there until I woke up. I remember feeling so special. Stupid right? I can't believe I used to worship the ground he walked on."

"Aw, Sakura, don't worry we won't tell anyone that you used to act like a fangirl," he tugged on a strand of her short pink hair and said, "they all already know anyway." And then he ran for his life.

"UZUMAKI!" The pink haired woman ran behind him, leaving Sai in the dust, promising to herself if, when, she caught up to Naruto, she'd hit him so hard he'd end up back in the hospital for the next week.

.

Sai.

.

He watched them go and shook his head. He didn't fit in with this team. He never belonged here. Putting him in with this team was like trying to finish a puzzle with a piece that looked like it would fit, but didn't.

He sighed and watched them running before turning around and heading back into the forest, content to find a nice branch and sit on it while painting something new.

He wasn't Uchiha Sasuke, and he wasn't going to try to be.

He wasn't even what they knew him as. He wasn't Sai. But that, that he could try to be.

For them, because although he didn't fit into their picture of perfection, they were his friends and he would care for them like they cared for him.

.

Kakashi.

.

He was sitting on a nice rooftop when he heard screams and chaos below him, and looking down (and away from his precious book) he saw Naruto being chased by Sakura, while she was screaming that he'd be in the hospital for at least a week after she was done with him.

He sighed and shook his head, going back to his book.

Some things never changed.

Some things would always stay the same.

Change soon left his mind, as he was pulled into his book.

_But now they had to try their hardest to remember what it's like._

* * *

><p><em>Another chapter for this too!<em>

_I think I have some serious problems. Instead of steadily updating, I update everything at around the same time and then I virtually disappear off of the face of the world for, like, a month before reemerging._

_But school's almost over! Maybe I'll have more time to update. Maybe. _

_My excuses will be something along the lines of: _

_On vacation with my family with little to no access to a computer._

_Hanging out with friends._

_My friends won't leave unless I threaten them (or run out of food)._

_Busy doing summer stuff. _

_LIKE FLOATING IN MY POOL! (Which still hasn't been opened due to the fact that it gets warm then gets really cold then gets warm again-BUT IT WILL OPEN SOON. I WILL MAKE SURE OF IT!)_

_Cherries now has to go do homework, study for her test, and finish a project all before tomorrow morning._

_Anyway, review!_


	4. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**Once Upon a Time**

* * *

><p><em>They were Team 7…<em>

.

Morning.

Hospital.

Sakura.

.

The pink-haired woman moaned and glared at the top of her desk, or rather, she glared at the manila folders currently obscuring the top of her desk. The people in this village were getting foolish and she, and the other medics, were the ones left to clean them up. Honestly, the people around here were like children.

Spoiled children because they kept expecting the medics to clean up for them.

And she was tired. Tired of it all.

Stuffing her hands in her coat pockets, and ignoring the mess on her desk, Sakura took a walk up to Tsunade's office. She was going to lodge her complaint. The people of Konoha couldn't continue being careless.

And if no one was going to step up, well, she very well was.

Because she cared about them…

Even if they didn't care about themselves…

.

Hokage Tower.

Naruto.

.

He was just walking down the stairs, minding his own business, and thinking about what Tsunade had been talking to him about. It wasn't his fault that Konohamaru was running around Konoha scaring the crap out of people. He wasn't the kids body guard.

But no, Tsunade had to go call him up (and away from his precious ramen) to tell him that he was going to have to keep a closer eye on Konohamaru. Great. Where was that pervert when you needed him?

Naruto sighed and ran his hands through his spiky blond hair and continued going down the stairs, not noticing Sakura until he ran into her.

"Wow, Naruto, pay attention to where you're going. You nearly knocked me down the stairs."

"Sorry Sakura, but you weren't paying attention either, you know?"

"Yeah… I have to talk to Tsunade about something."

"Oh, you seem pretty bummed. Want to go out and get some ramen with me? We can talk about… _feelings _if you want." At the word 'feelings' Naruto's face constricted as if he'd just stepped into a particularly nasty pile of Akamaru's dog droppings without his shoes on.

Sakura offered Naruto a small, strained, smile, "Can't. I'm buried at work, which is why I'm going up to see Tsunade. The people around here are getting careless and I'm going to do something about it."

"Alright, Sakura, enjoy your save the world campaign, I on the other hand, really need ramen so I'll see you later?" He was edging around her. Sakura was in what Team 7 called her 'Mother Hen' mode. Which meant only one thing; he had to get out before she stopped him with a lecture on how ramen was bad for him. Or about how he should wear something other than orange.

Or about how he should wear clean underwear _every day_.

At that last thought Naruto outwardly shuddered and stomped down the stairs like there would be a ramen band insinuated as of tomorrow and it was the last day for him to ever eat ramen. Actually, no, because if that had happened he'd explode or implode. Depending on how much ramen he'd be able to consume.

Once he was outside in the fresh air (and away from Sakura) he was able to concentrate more on his appetite for ramen. He really hadn't been getting enough of the stuff lately but it wasn't fun to eat ramen alone. He needed someone to eat with him, even if they weren't going to talk.

Because, although he would never admit it, Naruto did feel alone, he'd felt alone for a while now. It was a feeling he'd been so used to he'd forgotten when he'd started feeling it. He'd almost forgotten that for a time, he hadn't felt so alone. And although he hadn't forgotten the fact, he'd forgotten what it felt like to not be so alone.

Sure he was loved and sure there was Kakashi and Sakura and Tsunade and Hinata and the rookies and Gai's team, and heck, even Sai. But to Naruto something felt off, and although it was on the tip of his tongue, he couldn't remember what it was that he was missing. What had brought on that feeling, because that feeling had been gone for a while now, and Naruto had another feeling that it would stay gone for a while more.

Dragging himself out of these thoughts as he reached the ramen stand, Naruto was happy to find Sai on a tree above it, drawing something or another.

"Hey Di-"

"I thought I told you not to start with that!"

"Stop whining. What took you so long? I've been waiting here for an hour. Figures, the one time I feel like being your teammate you show up as late as Kakashi. Is it something that runs in your team or something? I see Ugly's not with you. Oh well, come on, I'm hungry."

Naruto felt pleasantly surprised at the fact that Sai had waited for him. Sai almost never did that. Not unless he wanted something out of Naruto. Usually they only ate together if Kakashi and/or Sakura was there with them.

Naruto sat down next to Sai, happy he'd have someone to not talk to (and maybe even talk to) as he slurped all the ramen he was able to.

.

Top of Ramen Stand.

Kakashi.

.

Kakashi decided he'd wait another hour or so before he'd drop down and join the two slurping ramen before them. Maybe Sakura would show up and they'd all eat together. Besides, Naruto had showed him up by being late. Sakura wasn't here, therefore she was also late. What was with everybody trying to steal his thunder?

But perhaps that was why another member of Team 7 wasn't sitting below him slurping ramen with Naruto. Perhaps that particular person was late. Very, very late because he, just like all the other kiddies out there wanted to be cool and show him (Kakashi) up. Because Kakashi was cool.

And even if people didn't think he was cool, they couldn't deny the fact that he had cool hair.

Humming to himself, Kakashi soon lost track of time, too busy (re)reading his precious orange book, deciding he'd pop down if he got hungry. Or if Sakura showed up, whichever came first.

.

One hour later.

Sakura.

.

Sakura sighed, figuring it was useless, she'd try to talk Tsunade into talking to everyone else but Tsunade had explained they wouldn't listen. But how would Tsunade know that if she hadn't even tried? Instead of accomplishing what she'd wanted, Sakura had wasted a whole hour, no, a whole day, because Tsunade insisted she take the day off and _relax_. So all in all Sakura was two steps back from where she started and even more stuff she had to do tomorrow.

Great.

And to top it all off, that stupid nurse's words _still _haunted her.

_"Perhaps you shouldn't lean on him too much Sakura; you're beginning to take advantage of him." _

But Sakura had to. She had to lean on him. Because he was Naruto and he was the reason she wasn't completely insane. The stupid nurse just didn't understand. She didn't know what it felt like to be Sakura and have all these responsibilities piled up on her. She didn't have to be the responsible one.

Sakura liked having breaks, she needed them or she'd go completely crazy and start pulling her hair out. And Naruto was her break. When he was around, it wasn't hard to be the responsible one because he was an adult just like her and although he was stupid at times, he was also really smart and loyal. He could take care of himself. He didn't really _need _her like he kept saying he did.

That thought usually hurt her, because she liked feeling needed, and when it came to Naruto she wanted to feel needed or else he might leave her behind and do great things on his own. Then she'd have nobody.

Because Sakura was alone, she may have seemed lucky with friends and the only one on Team 7 who had a family, but still she was inexplicably alone. She had no one to understand her. No one who truly and completely knew and understood her, sure there had been Ino, but that was when they were younger with less on their plates.

They weren't that close these days either. Ino had her teammates and her responsibilities while she (Sakura) had her own.

Keeping this depressing attitude, Sakura walked over to the ramen stand where she found Naruto, Kakashi and Sai, slurping away. Sighing, she sat down next to Sai and ordered her usual.

At least she belonged somewhere.

Even if that somewhere was in a ramen stand with a blond blob of hyperactive sunshine, a lazy pervert, and a moody artist.

.

Sai.

.

Sai had been doing a lot of thinking lately, especially after he'd had that sort of epiphany a few days ago about Sasuke. Although he was eating ramen with his "Team" (and he used the word loosely because he wasn't really part of the team, just a replacement until the old teammate came back) he was more focused on the people next to him (and a specific person who _wasn't _next to him, a specific person he had just _barely_ met).

First he took in Sakura, because she'd arrived late and moody and downright depressed, although her mood had seemed to change as soon as she ordered her usual and started listening to Naruto complain about how Kakashi was sucking up to Sakura by hiding his book when she walked in just because he didn't want to get beat up.

He didn't have any former personality to compare his "teammates" to, all he had were explanations of how they used to be from other people, which were biased, for example, a former fangirl of Sasuke's had called Sakura, "that ugly whore" because she'd been on the same team as Sasuke. So he didn't have much to go on. Sure he called her 'Ugly' but that was out of (dare he say it) affection. He didn't really think she was ugly, just like he didn't really think Ino was that beautiful.

But back to Sakura, he'd heard that she had once been innocent, sweet, and sort of dormant. Not weak, but not really strong either. Like she hadn't been trying because she'd been too hard to get the attention of the Uchiha to care much about anything else, let alone herself.

Now, though, Sakura wasn't innocent (or sweet), she was strong, both physically and in will. A good word to describe Sakura would be tainted. She was distorted. Not quite what she once was, but not quite different. In a way she was enhanced.

Naruto, well, as far as Sai was concerned, Naruto had only got stronger and more determined, definitely enhanced. Not that changed either. Apparently he'd always had a thing for orange and ramen. He also had a thing for friendship and loyalty. He was still strong (pig) headed. And there was no way he was going to live past forty with the way he was consuming all that ramen.

Naruto, although people thought he was a pretty stupid kid, was actually smart. Something Sai would never admit aloud and thought painful to even think. Naruto wasn't foolish, he was more, naïve. Like he knew the truth, knew what was right and what others believed, but chose his own way of thinking over it because he believed it to be better, and at times it was.

So Naruto wasn't foolish or stupid. He was more… clever.

As for Kakashi, well Sai didn't really mix with Kakashi that much, only here and there when he couldn't train with Yamato, Naruto or Sakura. Due to this fact he didn't have that much of a read on the man. Apparently he was lazy and a pervert, had been before Sasuke, obviously was after the Uchiha had left. Almost like the Uchiha leaving didn't affect him (but, it did, he saw some of the sneak glances Kakashi made towards that empty seat).

Sai also knew what Kakashi, and probably the rest of Konoha, thought of him. A clone. A washed out copy of Sasuke. Somebody picked out to replace the Uchiha on Team 7 because he was the closest thing they could find to the real thing. The Original.

Some days that bothered him, but usually he pushed that thought deep down, not letting it bother him.

Sai couldn't see what Sasuke had done to deserve the unconditional love that Naruto and Sakura gave him.

He didn't see why the Uchiha left after he had gained that love and bond.

He didn't see why Sasuke ran away.

He couldn't understand it.

And it drove him crazy.

Sai was one of those people who had that bad habit of needing to know everything. Usually he could hide it pretty well or bang it down, but this one thing drove him out of control. For as long as he'd been a part of Team 7, he couldn't figure out why the Uchiha would want to leave.

Power, people told him, he'd left for power.

Power and revenge.

But Sai was pretty sure there was, at least there should be, something else driving him. Or he would have already killed Naruto. He would have killed Naruto at that bridge they had fought at when Naruto had chased him and tried to get him to go back to Konoha. No, there was something else there, Sai was sure of it.

After all he was human.

_Now they're not so sure if they still are..._

* * *

><p><em>Longest chapter for this story so far!<em>

_I haven't updated for almost two months. I'm so sorry. I know no excuses in the world will spare me. _

_I'm going to cut my rant short here because I also want to update my other stories (some of which I also haven't updated for two months, some for one)._

_Hmm… I've already done This is Me. And I've just finished this one. So that leaves Not a Fairy Tale and The Mission of a Lifetime._

_Well I'll see. Which one I have more juices flowing for._

_Oh, by the way, does it bother you have they have that thingy up at the top? Right by my Disclaimer so it's all out of whack? Because it bothers me. A lot._


	5. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**Once Upon a Time**

* * *

><p><em>They were blissfully happy…<em>

Morning.

Training Grounds.

Sakura.

.

The tired medic leaned against a tree and watched Naruto spar with Sai out of the corner of her eye. It was a match similar to those that preceeded it and she wanted something new, something different from her normal, everyday rutine. She let her gaze wander and soon it settled on their sensei, Kakashi. He was, of course, sitting in a tree and reading his perverted book.

Why was it that somethings never changed? No matter how ardently you wished them to?

Soon she grew tired of Kakashi as well, all he did was read his little book and, occasionally, giggle at something in it. What that was, Sakura was sure she didn't want to know.

She allowed her gaze to drift again and soon found herself staring at the tall grass, which swayed with the wind, while she played with a white daisy and soon her eyes drifted half-closesd as the grass strands blurred together in a beautiful shade of bright green. The kind of green her eyes could never rival, no matter how vibrant everyone claimed them to be.

Sakura didn't realize it, but she dozed, drifting in and out of consiousness while she sat their and stared at the empty half of the field-the place where not even Naruto's crazy fighting could harm it seemed.

She smiled a little, tiny bit. Even though she loved Naruto to pieces the boy was a bit too hectic. It made her worry about him, even if he was a big boy, even if he could take care of himself, she would always worry, it's just how she was.

With her half lidded eyes now turned to the direction of the fight, she in her half dream state, watched Naruto spin in and out of attacks, thwarting his opponent, she couldn't help but wonder when he got this good at fighting, sure she'd noticed it before, but she never really saw the full extent of it until now.

Sakura hummed a little as she watched the true beauty of Naruto's fighting style, not really paying attention to the moves, but rather the overall quality of it as he beat Sasuke back, inch by inch.

Her heart stopped.

It was like she'd seen a ghost, the face of someone lost and dead, buried below the ground long ago. Someone she'd forgotten about, someone she'd left behind when she moved on. Someone she never thought she'd see again.

She stood up abruptly, dropping the daisy she was twirling on the ground, forgotten, her eyes wide, her blood pumping, she took a step and her vision, spotted with black dots, forced her to keep still so she wouldn't fall over.

When it finally settled, she realized that no, it wasn't Sasuke.

It was Sai.

And she couldn't help the bitter wave of resentment (at Sai for not being Sasuke), sorrow (for the very reason that Sai wasn't Sasuke), embarissment (for even thinking that Naruto was sparring Sasuke like they used to-she must have been out of her mind), and a crushing sense of bitter dissappointment, along with the a little shred of the tiny, fragile piece of hope that she kept close to her heart (the little shard that said they'd all be together again one day-one big happy family) peal away and fall to the floor where it lay shrivled up, impossible to salvage.

She slumped, and sat back down by the tree. Unfortunately, her rush of motion had drawn the eye of Kakashi but (thankfully) Sai (not Sasuke) and Naruto hadn't noticed. She smiled at her sensei and he returned to his book, blissfully clueless. She had nothing to worry about when it came to Kakashi. He didn't care about her enough to ask, much less wonder, about what caused her to act like she had.

Somehow, she was still, not good enough for him. Even after all her training, she still wasn't good enough for his team, for her team (because it was hers too, in all rights).

She still wasn't good enough for them.

She brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms tightly around them, her face buried in her thighs. Her heart.

_It hurt._

.

Training Grounds.

Kakashi.

.

Kakashi had been blisfully reading his preferred book when out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sakura, whom he'd presumed had been fast asleep, leap up and take a step towards Naruto and Sai, Kakashi of course, being the worried sensei who cared for nothing but the well-being of his team had moved his gaze (forcibly ripped) from his book to the two young men sparring on the fields.

A quick analysis showed him that nothing was in fact wrong, at least nothing that he could see. Perhapse one of them pulled an advantatious move? But no, they were still in the same deadlock Kakashi had seen them in a few minutes ago, when Sai had gotten a second wind, so to speak.

He mulled over Sakura for a few moments, glancing back at her, but when she saw him looking her way, she smiled and he, not suspecting anything, maybe she'd just wanted to stretch or had been frightened by a snake (she was afraid of those, ironically).

Kakashi, when it came to Sakura, never had to worry. She was the one person on the team he could trust to handle herself.

Naruto was a handful, always had been, and always would be. He was a noisy little brat, but Kakashi had grown accustomed to it, to him, really. Ever since the snot nosed little kid had left with Jiraiya, Kakashi had noticed more spirit in him. He was almost a man, not so much the little boy he used to be. Kakashi would admit (if not aloud, then in his mind) that he missed the short, overconfident Naruto he used to know (although he hadn't changed much).

Sai, well, Kakshi didn't really interact much with Sai. Although Sai was officially part of Team 7, the boy was usually off on his own, or with Sakura or Naruto or Yamato. Sai wasn't really Kakashi's to worry about (though he did worry). Kakashi was afraid Sai would be eclipsed by the Uchiha boy, whose spot on the team he had taken. Although Sai never asked for Kakashi's guidence, Kakashi would gladly give it to him.

Sasuke was, sadly, not really Kakashi's problem anymore, in a sense. The brat had deserted. But still, he had been a part of Kakashi's team, and Kakashi had grown close to him (his emotions always seemed to be betraying him). Since Sasuke had joined up with the snake-man, Kakashi's worry for him had overflowed. It could rival an ocean. Therefore the silly Uchiha boy would remain to be Kakashi's problem until Naruto dragged his sorry butt back to Konoha (then Kakashi would have a whole river of new worries he'd have to deal with).

But Sakura. Sakura was always well balanced. She knew right from wrong. She wasn't impulsive. She thought things through. She cared about other peoples' feelings. If she needed help, she got it. She wasn't afraid that people would think of her as any less for it. And look at her now. Aprentice to the Hokage. She'd grown up. She could take care of herself. And others as well. She could even take care of him.

No, Sakura was the one person on his team he didn't havee to worry about.

.

Noon.

Sai.

Ramen Stand.

.

Sai, as he slurped down ramen, glanced at the woman with pink hair. She was currently talking to Naruto, not really touching her ramen, just picking at the noodles. He noticed how her face was pale. At first he'd thought it was because she'd had to heal all the wounds (of various sizes) on both Naruto and himself, but no, she had been pale before that as well. He thought for a second, and realized her eyes had been red too.

Maybe she'd been crying?

He mulled it over, enjoying the rare silence that intruded in on them as soon as Naruto left to go to the bathroom. Sakura was staring awkwardly at her noodles, looking at him from out of the corner of her eye while Kakashi continued to read his porn, oblivious. Sai had a feeling he was the cause of this-whatever this was-that Sakura was feeling.

Perhapse he'd try to make her feel better?

"Sakura." She jumped. It was miniscule but he noticed, and so did Kakashi, who looked up and raised a brow before going back into his book.

"Yes?" She looked up at him but he noticed how she wouldn't quite meet his eyes.

"Is there something wrong?" The cool façade he always put up was right in place, creating a barrier between them, one that he didn't know how to tear down.

"No. Not at all." And before he could even get another word in, she slurped down noodles (more than she had in the entire half hour they'd been in the ramen stand) and Naruto came back, completely clueless, and began screaming for more ramen.

Lucky girl.

She was saved by the idiot.

He noticed Kakashi pay his bill and slip away, undetected by Naruto, but he also noticed Sakura watching him leave.

Were the two of them…?

No, probably not, at least, if any of the dark looks Sakura sometimes shot his way were of any indication.

No, probably not.

.

Kakashi.

Somewhere on the Road of Life.

.

Something was off with Sakura.

It most likely had to do with Sai, if the way she looked when he asked her if she was alright gave any indication.

Were the two of them…?

No, probably not, even if Sai looked like Sasuke, Sakura wouldn't stoop that low, besides she was all grown up now, surely she was over her petty crush on the handsome Uchiha man by now.

Sai and Sakura?

He chuckled to himself.

No, probably not.

.

Naruto.

Leaving the Ramen Stand.

.

The Uzumaki boy stared at his pink haired friend. She was currently listening to him blubber about something (sometimes not even he knew what he was talking about) or another and he studied her. There was something off about her-the way that she wouldn't eat, or the paleness of her skin, or the reds of her eyes. He wasn't clueless. He was Naruto Uzumaki and he cared about his friends.

He noticed things too. He was a ninja too. He loved her too. He worried about her too.

He probably knew her the best, out of everyone.

Which is why he acted clueless, why he pretended like he couldn't see her pain; because he knew that if he asked her what was wrong, she'd blow it.

What Sakura needed now, was just what she always needed when she was like this: space. Normallacy.

Only Sakura decided when she talked about something. No one else could force her to speak her mind. She would talk when she was ready and only then.

Besides, Sakura wasn't some weakling who needed to spill her feelings or she'd boil over.

No, she was strong. She was the one person he didn't have to worry about. Because she was Sakura and she was unbreakable.

She'd come around eventually.

He waved to her and walked on to his apartment as she took a turn down the road that led to hers.

She was his best friend.

She'd always been strong, he'd envied her for it, loved her for it.

No, he didn't need to worry about her.

No, probably not.

.

Sakura.

Her Apartment.

.

She didn't know what to do.

She was drowning.

Not just because of the whole Sai not Sasuke issue, but because all the insecurities she'd felt when she was younger, all those that she'd tried to push away, overcome, they were coming back.

They were haunting her.

And it seemed as if no one noticed.

No one other than Sai that is, Sai who had the emotional capacity of a rock.

She screamed, picked up the closest thing to her, which just happened to be a vase full of daisys, and threw it against the wall, where it landed with a crash and a splash and everything went everywhere.

She soon followed it, leaning against the opposite wall with a thud before sliding down to the floor, her emotions every which way.

A few hours later, she managed to pick herself up off the floor, brushing the last of her angry tears away from her stained cheeks. She walked across the floor to the vase pieces and picked them up with her hands, not caring that they cut her hands, she could heal them, and a little pain was good for waking up.

She cleaned up the mess and looked around her lonely home.

She needed… something. But she didn't know what.

Maybe she could talk to Naruto?

It would burden him…

But he was Naruto, the one she could always count on.

He was her best friend.

But still…

No, probably not.

.

Konoha Enterance.

.

He smirked as he stepped through the gates of his town.

He was home.

_But now they were crushed by their emotions…_

* * *

><p><em>This huge chapter is my way of saying sorry for not updating for almost 6 months. I'm a horrible persona and I should probably be burned at the stake. Forgive me?<em>

_Now all I need to do is update Not a Fairy Tale… too bad I can't remember where I was going with that._

_Anyway, it's amazing what one person can drive you to do. I dedicate this chapter to them, even if I'm seriously mad at them, if I weren't, well then, maybe we'd be texting and I wouldn't be writing this._

_So… Review? You know, bribe, incentive, whatever you want to call it (I call it ego boosting)._

_Whatever you wanna call it, it makes me wanna write._

_Oh, and there are probably not going to be any relationships in this other than the family bonding/love type._

_So review!_

_Because I honestly need some feedback on this._

_Do you like it?_

_Is it going well? _

_Do I need more of one person?_

_Less of another?_


	6. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**Once Upon a Time**

* * *

><p><em>Things were forgiven easily between them; forgiveness was as free as air, as breathing…<em>

.

Morning.

Training Grounds.

Sakura.

.

Morning brought with it the composure Sakura needed, it was as if all that was bothering her yesterday was gone, washed free. But it wasn't, not really, it was just burried deep, deep, deep into her heart, somewhere that would stay untouched for a while more.

Her days had taken on a sort of routine. Those when she wasn't in the hospital were spent in the same manner yesterday had been spent.

There really was no difference between yesterday and today.

Except, that today, she wouldn't make a mistake.

"Sakura! Why don't you train with us?" Naruto had left his battle with Sai and was now squatting in front of her, his nose nearly touched hers.

Sakura scrunched up her nose and leaned away from him, as much as the tree behind her would allow, "Naruto! I don't feel like training. Besides, it's more fun watching you and Sai fight."

"You said that yesterday!"

"Kakashi-sensei! Naruto's bothering me!" Sakura yelled, occasionally she and Naruto would act like children, and she'd call Kakashi in to yell at Naruto.

.

Training Grounds.

Kakashi.

.

Kakashi looked up from his book and called out, "Naruto! Leave Sakura alone."

"But sensei! She won't train with us!" Naruto's voice changed into that whiny little-kid tone that was so common when they were younger.

Kakashi wouldn't admit this to anyone, but he rather liked days when he got to play the father part. This was his little famiy.

"Naruto." Kakashi's voice held that warning tone he'd loved to use.

"Fine." Naruto blew out air, crossed his arms and sat back on his heels, "Are you suuure, Sakura?"

She glared at him.

"Fine." He repeated.

Kakashi was a little disappointed, he'd wanted the bickering to last a little longer, but Sai wasn't Sasuke and he wouldn't add to the fire, he'd just sit and watch.

Kakashi eyed him and saw that was exactly what the man was doing, watching them. It was a little disconcerting how Sai seemed to watch them all the time; it was like the man somehow knew what thoughts were running through each of their heads. It was almost like he knew them better than they knew themselves.

.

Training Grounds.

Sai.

.

Sai watched them. They were a _family_. Sai had never felt so excluded with them before. Not even when he'd first joined the team and made all the wrong moves, said all the wrong things. Even then he'd felt included, but now, not at all. Now he felt very much excluded.

At least Sakura was acting normally today. It was as if she'd practically forgotten yesterday…

.

Training Grounds.

Sakura.

.

Naruto was still obnoxiously close to her face, and just as she pushed him back, she shook her hair back and glanced at Sai, to tell him to help her get the blond haired idiot out of her face, but she froze, her hands still resting on his shoulders, because she was going crazy.

Absolutely, undeniably, crazy.

This could not be happening again.

"Eh? Sakura? Are you okay?" Naruto questioned, and she noticed him swivle his head to see what she was gawking at, because she couldn't answer him.

..

She felt her mouth open, and then close, in shock, because out of the corner of her eye, she could see Sai. Staring at Kakashi.

In the opposite direction where Sai should be.

And Sakura stared at Sasuke in shock, because in all honesty, she'd given up on the thought that he'd want to come back to Konoha.

Let alone come back _willingly_without Naruto dragging him, cuffed.

Truth be told, Sakura had imagined this many, many times. Sasuke's come back. And never. Not once, not even when he first left, in her wildest fantasies did she believe that he'd come back willingly.

And lately, she'd begun to believe he wouldn't come back at all.

And she really hadn't expected for him to show up in the middle of the training field.

Shouldn't someone, Tsunade maybe, know that he was here?

Underneath all that shock, her heart raced and she was _happy_ because she'd missed him just as _much_ as Naruto and Kakashi had.

Some small part of her brain noted that the only reason her heart raced was because she was happy, because she missed him, but it didn't race because of _him_. His entity. That tiny part of her brain whispered something of being free and perhaps not loving him anymore?

But Sakura didn't notice, just because she wasn't that little girl anymore, didn't mean that she couldn't be act like a little girl for a little while.

Maybe she'd give him a hug later.

Maybe...

If she wasn't going crazy and he was real. Really, really, real.

But right now she'd stare at him with her mouth open, her palms sweaty, her eyes brimming with unshed tears and her hear heart, her poor broken, sheltered, sliver of a heart, was racing and pounding so hard she could hear it and only it.

"You see him too," she breathed out, barely a whisper, "right?"

.

Training Grounds.

Kakashi.

.

Kakashi was examining Sai with a narrowed eye. There was really more to him than he put forward. Something inside him that he kept burried.

Maybe the man wasn't as dead inside as everyone thought he was…

"Eh? Sakura? Are you okay?" Kakashi heard Naruto question, and he turned to see what was wrong with Sakura. Hadn't they been fighting just moments before? What had that idiot done now?

Kakashi looked over to them, only to find them looking in a completely different direction, a direction that held a brooding man, one who was very familiar to Kakashi.

The Uchiha boy had changed; he was taller now, larger as well. He'd grown up in his absence it seemed. Kakashi honestly couldn't believe it was him, yet his signiture was unike and that lead him to wonder why the Hokage or _someone_, _anyone_, wasn't out here detaining him at this moment.

What bothered Kakashi the most, was not the fact that no one else in the village had noticed, it was a trait of Sasuke's. His eyes, they were dead, they held no emotion what-so-ever. Not even that hatred that had built a home in them, not even recognition or even the slightest softening at seeing his old team.

Kakashi had to remind himself that this Sasuke was different; he wasn't the same boy he'd known before.

Sasuke, Kakashi was positive, was dead inside, nothing to speculate about with him.

"You see him too," Kakashi faintly heard Sakura breathe out, barely a whisper, "right?"

Kakashi could only nod at this question, although Sakura wasn't looking at him.

.

Training Grounds.

Sai.

.

When Kakashi had stopped examining Sai, the boy-man had turned around to see what everyone was so caught up in, was it something about Sakura? Sai had heard Naruto question her, to see if she was okay, perhapse she'd injured herself? But no, a quick glance at everyone showed that they were staring somewhere else. Just who stood there that could capture their attention so raptly?

Sasuke.

Sasuke Uchiha.

Of course.

He really should have guessed that it would be the man he was replacing. The man who was always first, where Sai was always second.

Sai was finally given his chance to examine the Uchiha protégé; he could finally form his own opinion and see how close the others were of their assesment of the last Uchiha.

Sasuke Uchiha was tall, but not taller than himself. Others were right when they said Sai was just a washed out shadow of Sasuke, he could see that now. Although Sasuke was shorter than him, it was not by much, in fact, if Sai stood by the man, then people might say that Sasuke was taller, simply because Sasuke commanded attention while Sai lived in the background. It was not something one controlled; it was simply decided for you based on your personality.

Sasuke seemed as if he was larger than Sai, bigger, more commanding. Everything about him seemed to catch the eye. No wonder girls fell over him, Sai could appreciate how handsome Sasuke was.

Sai would admit, even he would rather have Sasuke than himself.

Sasuke was the full-image.

Sai was the cheap copy.

The one thing about Sasuke that bothered Sai was his eyes.

His dead eyes.

Sure Sai's eyes portrayed no emotion, he knew that, he'd specifically _trained h_is face to be passive at all times, Sasuke's though, was not trained. That was simply how he felt. Empty. Dead.

Sasuke was a shell of a man.

Sai wondered if anyone else could see that.

"You see him too," she breathed out, barely a whisper, "right?"

Sai saw him, oh yes, but he wondered how much of him Sakura saw.

Could she see his inner feelings, or lack of?

Could anyone?

.

Training Grounds.

Naruto.

.

Right afer Naruto had asked her the question; a wave of power hit him. A chakra signature so powerful and familiar, it forced him to turn his attention to his best friend, his brother, his enemy, Sasuke Uchiha.

Naruto, at this point, knows it's him. Knows that this is his best friend standing there, just a few feet away, but his brain can't seem to process this. A quick glance at Sakura shows just how hard it is for her to process this as well.

Never in a million years did Naruto think that Sasuke would come back willingly, let alone by himself.

If Naruto was being honest, he'd admit that he'd imagined Sasuke coming back home a hundred times, and in each and every instance (except for maybe at first, when he'd still believed in Sasuke, still believed in goodness) Sasuke was being dragged back to Konoha, most likely unconcious after a full out battle and a lot of new formed scars.

Sasuke looked so much older.

That was the first thing Naruto noticed about him being there, the first physical thing, once he got past the shock.

Sure he'd gotten older and so had Sakura (and of course Kakashi sensei) but Sasuke seemed to radiate the fact. There was nothing left of the Sasuke he'd known as a child (except maybe the hair, but that had changed too).

Sakura's hair was still pink, her eyes were still that emerald-green shade that couldn't quite figure out if it wanted to shine or not, and her forehead was still pretty big.

He was still the same, or so he'd like to think, he looked just like himself. Just bigger, streatched out.

(He fought hard to keep his inner demons deep inside, where no one could see.)

Not that Naruto was unhappy to see his old friend, but he couldn't help wonder… Why was he back? What was his agenda? There was obviously something more to this. Now all he needed to do's figure what.

"You see him too," she breathed out, barely a whisper, "right?"

"Yeah," he breathed back, "I see him."

.

Training Grounds.

Sasuke.

.

Sasuke notices Sakura first, that pink hair just catches his attention. He notices that there's something different, not quite wrong, but off about Sakura. Something almost-different and he can't put his finger on it. It bothers him. Sure they're all different, heck, he's different (did he really think they'd stay the same after all these years?)

Naruto's more mature, still an idiot, but he's seen things, things people shouldn't have to see, especially innocent, believe in the good of everyone and everything, people like Naruto. But he has, he's seen these things and he's aged. It's in his eyes. Just one glance at him could tell you that he was trying to hide it, keep it bottled up, but there's only so much you can hide. Eventually you run out of hiding places and it all comes out. Sasuke, of all people, should know.

Besides, he's taller now too.

And his jumpsuit is a little less atrocious.

His eyes go back to Sakura, and he wonders why she hasn't jumped him yet.

Shock, he reasons, she hasn't jumped up to worship him because of the shock.

His eyes wander over to Kakashi. He looks just the same, but that's probably because more than half his face is covered, he's in the same pose as he always used to be in, slightly hunched, hand in pocket, book in other hand, the book that he was currently reading (technically, because currently he was examining Sasuke) happened to be the first one Sasuke had ever seen Kakashi read.

Almost like things were coming full circle.

Why wasn't Naruto jumping up to hug him?

Surely the idiot would be glad that Sasuke was back?

But then, another thought occurs to Sasuke, maybe Kakashi looks just the same because he's so used to being let down, disappointed. Maybe because he's already lost so many that he cares about that he can't get anymore marred-physically.

He never really expected Kakashi to be all emotional when he came back, so it's not much of a surprise when Kakashi makes no move.

Sai, well Sasuke never knew Sai, but he notices how Sai looks suspiciously like himself, dark hair and eyes, pale skin, he looks distant. Sasuke narrows his eyes at this, his _replacement_. He's bitter and he knows it. They've found someone better, some part of him voices, someone to replace Sasuke because he'd left them.

But really, it is his fault.

He can't help it if they've moved on...

Pathetic, he thinks, because he doesn't want to admit that he really has emotions, that he isn't some emotionless beast who doesn't care about things either way, he doesn't want to admit that it stings, _hurts, _that they didn't wait for him.

In spite, he thinks that Sai is just a washed out copy. He'll never be as good as the original. Sai will never be as good as Sasuke.

The washed-out boy watches him, his eyes flicking over Sasuke like he can read every thought passing through his head, like Sasuke's just some onion, and all Sai has to do is peal the skin back and he'll know everything.

And suddenly it hits him, all at once.

Why Sakura looks so different.

It's because of her eyes.

Not only have they lost their innocence, but they've lost that glow of love they used turn when she looked in his direction.

She'd stopped loving him.

He wondered if she knew.

But then, of course she'd know that she'd stopped loving him.

Of course she'd know...

Wouldn't she?

He wondered about how he felt about this sudden turn of events, he wondered how he felt about how different things had become, sure he'd known things would be different, but not this different. Not Sakura-doesn't-love-or-obsess-over-Sasuke-different. Some things he'd thought would always remain the same. Some things he'd thought would never change.

Foolish mistake.

.

Training Grounds.

Sakura.

.

SasukenotSaiSasukenotSai .

Sasuke.

Not.

Sai.

.

Training Grounds.

Kakashi.

.

Perhapse life wasn't full of dissappointments.

He smiled, but no one would be able to see, his mask was good for something.

Hiding his pride, because Sasuke'd made the decision to come back.

He knew he was being foolish, but he couldn't help it.

.

Training Grounds.

Sai.

.

Sasuke knew, he knew that he's better than Sai. And Sai knew that Sasuke was right.

He was lower.

He just didn't know why he'd tried to convince himself otherwise.

.

Training Grounds.

Naruto.

.

He finally grinned, it wasn't all going to be okay, but hey, this was a start.

And it was something.

.

Training Grounds.

Sasuke.

.

Would he be forgiven?

Some part of him hoped.

The part that refused to die out.

.

Training Grounds.

Naruto.

.

He stood up and went to his friend, and hugged him. Sasuke didn't move to hug Naruto back, but he didn't push him away either, and that was good. He felt everyone else join in, the group hug.

.

Training Grounds.

Sai.

.

He watched as everyone went and hugged Sasuke.

He didn't.

He knew two things.

He wasn't welcome.

And Sasuke just used them, all three of them. And by default, Sasuke used Sai.

But he wanted to know something, "Why are you here?"

He knew he was ruining their moment, but he wanted to do it. It felt good.

The words drowned out the crushing sound his hope made when it hit the floor.

.

Training Grounds.

Sasuke.

.

He let himself be hugged; after all, this was what he'd wanted, right? Some sign to show that he was always welcome.

"Why are you here?"

The stupid look-alike had to go and interupt his moment, Sasuke narrowed his eyes, "I don't have to answer you."

"Then answer me," Naruto pulled back and so did Sakura and Kakashi, instantly he missed them, because for a moment he'd felt young again, thawed, he'd felt _human_.

"Because… I have no where else to go. I wanted to come back home." It was the truth. Mostly.

"And why aren't there ANBU circling you?"

Sasuke shrugged, "I'm supposed to be drugged out at the hospital right now. I suppose they're still outside my room. My clone is currently occupying my room." He didn't particularly like the questioning; they should tust him.

Automatically.

He sighed, "My punishment is to stay in the hospital and be treated for my mental "instabilities" I was caught by the ANBU about an hour or two after I got back. But I wanted to be caught; I've already seen Tsunade, go ask her if you don't believe me. I don't think there's anything wrong with me but it was either this or solitaire. Every day I have to talk about my _feelings._" He spit the word out.

.

Training Grounds.

Sai.

.

Of course they'd let him go, the magnificent Uchiha.

He sighed, and walked away.

They didn't notice.

.

Training Grounds.

Kakashi.

.

He nodded, it made sense, but they'd go and see Tsunade anyway, get it from her. Just because he'd come back, didn't mean that things would go back to how they'd once been.

No, they had to work up to it.

Sasuke had a lot of making up to do, once they were over the fact that he was back.

.

Training Grounds.

Sakura.

.

She'd see Sasuke almost every day, then! If he was staying at the hospital, that is, she wondered if she could be his personal nurse.

She wondered if he'd let her visit him.

She wondered what else the future held for them.

She wondered what she'd (they'd) done to have something so fortunous happent to them.

She wondered why she wasn't more excited about him being back.

She wondered what was wrong with her.

.

Training Grounds.

Naruto.

.

Surely things would get better now, little by little, they'd get better.

He was determined to make it so.

No matter what.

Silently he made a new promise to Sakura, to himself.

He wouldn't let Sasuke get away this time.

_Now he wouldn't be forgiven, no, not quite so quickly, he'd have to earn his forgiveness, bit by bit…_

* * *

><p><em>Unfortunately, I don't think I did their reactions all that well, so I appologize for that.<em>

_But, this is probably the longest chapter I've ever written! 14 whole pages!_

_I really hope you like it._

_Hmm… I wonder what the next chapter holds for us!_


	7. Chapter 6

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**Once Upon a Time**

* * *

><p><em>They would look past each other's flaws…<em>

.

Morning.

Hokage Tower.

Kakashi.

.

Tsunade had just finished explaining to them the same thing they'd heard from Sasuke, how he was to go through mental therapy and if he didn't cooperate, he would be sent down to solitare. Seems like his former student had been speaking the truth after all, it wasn't as if Kakashi hadn't believed the Uchiha boy, it was more like he still didn't trust him. Didn't trust that Sasuke was here for pure reasons, not after what he'd seen.

Kakashi knew for a fact Sasuke would always be surrounded by ANBU, until he proved himself, but, still, Kakashi would watch him, would more or less take care of him. There was no way he was letting Sasuke escape again, no, he couldn't let more pain fill his team. They'd already been stretched and bent in so many different angles and shapes, he was afraid throwing Sasuke (who had always been all three of theirs weak point) into the equation so blatantly once again would rip them into such a way that they couldn't be fixed, repaired, again.

Yesterday, he was pretty sure; they'd all been in shock. It had been a dream. Their wildest, craziest, most impossible dream, come true. Sasuke Uchiha had returned.

They all had assumed right away that things would pick up right where they'd left off years ago. He supposed they'd all held onto this hope that nothing had changed between them, that they'd just _click _back into place.

Spending fifteen minutes with the Uchiha boy had proved their thoughts wrong.

It had shown them how clueless he was about them now.

How he wasn't the same. How he really had changed.

How he was cruel now.

It had shown them how his heart had been torn out of his body, beaten, and shoved back in, upside down.

No, things weren't going to be the same, deep down, they all had known that, but they would try, try, to fix him, make him be the way he used to be.

.

Afternoon.

Hospital.

Sakura.

.

She was just a mix of emotions, ever since Sasuke'd come back, this morning she finally realized that she had never expected him to come back. She'd expected to grow old without ever really knowing what had happened to Sasuke Uchiha.

It sickened her, but she now knew some part of her had given up on him.

She didn't know when or how or _why. _She didn't even know what had caused her to change her feelings. But it had happened and now she was lost. She was confused.

Which is why she was aimlessly walking around the hospital corridors when her shift had ended almost two hours ago.

Did she still love Sasuke?

Why was he back?

Was he staying?

Was there a secret agenda?

Who was this new Sasuke?

She wanted to know. She needed to know the answers.

Sakura could feel herself becoming undone.

She needed to do something.

_ANYTHING._

She was screaming in her head. She needed a way out. She needed to be rescued.

For a moment Sakura was a little girl again, waiting for Naruto or Sasuke or Kakashi to come rescue her from whatever evil was trying to hurt her this time.

Except this time she wasn't sure what the evil was.

She didn't know what was trying to hurt her.

She only knew that they couldn't help her. This evil was on the inside, only she could reach it. Only she could fight it. Only she could stop it.

_BUT IT WAS DRIVING HER INSANE._

Sakura bit her lip, she needed to talk to Sasuke, but they weren't letting him have any visitors and his room was now sealed, he couldn't get out and only very few hand picked people could get in. She wasn't one of them.

Neither was Naruto.

Sakura could feel her fragile world begin to collapse; the world she'd built to keep her past demons out was beginning to cave in. The pain in her past, the one she'd tried so desperately to hide from was coming back to haunt her.

Evil images of Sasuke consmed with tattoos. Images of him almost ripping that boy's arms out. Evil images that she tried to counter with images of him trying to save her, images of him almost smiling.

"_Thank you."_

She wanted to scream. She was going to explode from the inside out. She didn't know what to do. She was coming undone.

Air, she needed air.

_She needed to BREATHE._

.

Outside the Hospital, Specifically Outside Sasuke Uchiha's Room.

Kakashi.

.

Kakashi lounged on a tree; book in hand, as he watched the Uchiha brat glare at Shizune. They weren't allowing him into the room but no one said that he couldn't watch Sasuke from above. He chuckled he was like a real life guardian angel. Fantastic.

For some reason, he felt bitter inside.

.

Ramen Stand.

Naruto.

.

The Uzumaki boy was pacing back and forth, ramen bowl in hand, although he wasn't slurping ramen down, just playing with it.

For some reason he felt _twitchy. _

Not his usual twitchy, this was a different twitchy. It wasn't good… It was bad.

He'd been feeling this way since yesterday, he didn't know why, but he felt unbalanced.

He handed the old man who worked at the stand some money for the ramen he never finished, waved a distracted good bye and walked away, ready to dedicate himself to walking the streets of Konoha, and maybe finding Sakura to ask him why he felt so odd.

.

Training Grounds.

Sai.

.

The artist watched them all become undone. It seemed as if Uchiha Sasuke was causing them to fall apart. Sai smirked; watching them unravel would be fun.

Sai rationalized how Sasuke was the linchpin. In the original equation he did no harm. Take him out of the equation and you'd receive a minor unbalance, one that soon settles in on itself and is easily fixed, there can even be a stand-in for the place the Uchiha had once held (himself). But putting the Uchiha back into the equation once it had fixed itself would lead to catastrophe, a major unbalance and the equation would collapse in on its self.

Sai began painting a pride of lions.

They had been so ready to have him back too… It really was such a shame…

Suddenly his brush stopped, midstroke.

Perhapse the linchpin was affecting him as well.

.

Hospital.

Sakura.

.

She'd run out of the suffocating hospital hallways, she'd run around the building to see if maybe she could run into the woods, or perhapse she'd be able to see Sasuke through some window or another, maybe he could tell her why she was going crazy. Maybe she should talk to Tsunade?

That seemed like a good idea and just as she was about to follow her mind in its moment of rationality, she saw Kakashi, and following his gaze, she saw Sasuke.

Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke.

_IT WAS ALWAYS SASUKE._

Kakashi was always looking after his favorites. Always, always, always.

Suddenly all Sakura could see was red. Nothing but red, as she stalked her way up to her former sensei and slapped him in way of alerting him to her preasance, he'd been so focused on that _stupid, stupid, STUPID WINDOW._

She can't breathe, there's pain in the place where her heart was only a few moments ago.

_Why doesn't he want to love her, protect her, too?_

.

Outside Sasuke's Window.

Kakashi.

.

"WHY?" She screams the word, and he hears her voice break on that one syllable, "WHY IS IT ALWAYS THEM? Why am I never good enough? _WHY DO YOU NEVER NOTICE ME?" _He looks at her and sees all the questions on her face, she wants to know why she's always number two, three, four, anything but first, why she's always left behind and forgotten in his book. His expression remains blank as he regards her with a cool eye, wondering whether or not he should tell her the truth.

"I'm a curse," Kakashi finally explains to her, opting for the truth, as he sits wearily and really looks at the broken girl she has become, "everything I care for, everyone I love ends up dead or crazy or broken or all of the above."

"Yeah, well ignoring me? It helped make me crazy and broken and one day I'll be dead and then, maybe, just maybe, I'll be lucky enough, important enough, to be included in the all of the above slot." Here she stopped and gave a bitter laugh, "Oh wait, I forgot, you have to care about them first don't you? You have to love them in order for them to be in the all of the above slot, and I don't think you cared one iota about me for one second sensei. You haven't done me any favors. So why? Why were Naruto and Sasuke good enough for you to care about when I wasn't? Why were they allowed to go crazy or broken or end up dead or all of the above, huh? Is it because they were already broken? Is that why? Why you didn't care about me? Because you thought I wasn't broken? Well congradulations, you broke me. Am I worthy now? Why not me who is worthless, worth so much less than both of them combined?" Kakashi watches her put all her effort into this speech, how she throws herself forward, how she makes exaggerated hand motions, how her short pink hair flies about her face in an angry mass of confusion. He can see her; see how she's trying oh so hard not to break down at the end of her speech. He can see how she's still human, how she hasn't completely turned inside of herself like the rest of them, like how even Naruto's slowly becoming.

Kakashi looks at her and wonders what happened to that little girl with the long pink hair and the bright green eyes and the trustworthy expression. He wonders what happened to that happy girl who believed in love and a chance at happiness, he wonders why life was so cruel to her, why life is cruel to anyone and he shakes his head at her. He doesn't have an answer for her, because he doesn't know. He doesn't know why he attached to Naruto and Sasuke and not her. Maybe it was because they reminded him a lot of himself. Maybe because, deep down, he knew they'd never have a chance at a happy life and he felt less guilty about getting close to them, about cursing them. But Sakura, she had a chance at love, at happiness, and he didn't want to take that away.

He knew now that he would have caused her pain either way. This way was just a little bit crueler.

He can see the new-found anger in her eyes.

He watches as she waits for an answer, gives him one last chance to explain his ways to her, gives him one last chance because she really wants to love him, but he is silent. He watches the last fragments of hope fall from her eyes, watches her look from him to the window where Sasuke is speaking to Shizune, undisturbed by the comotion that is happening outside.

For a second, just a moment, a space in time, he sees hatred in her eyes, hatred that dashes that little girl away, maybe forever.

She snorts and turns away from him before briskly walking away, "Good bye, Kakashi." The last word is a sneer and he knows he deserves her hatred and the fact that she doesn't call him sensei leaves a burning hole in his heart.

.

Hospital.

Sasuke.

.

He sighs and galres at Shizune. Really the woman is irritating. She's like Tsunade and Naruto and Sakura and Ino combined. She rivals even Karin in the annoying category, she's almost as bad as Sakura used to be.

Honestly, he can't stand this woman, who's trying to get into his head, figure out his twisted emotions, his messed up sense of reality.

But he gives her points for trying, trying to find out and cope and maybe understand a little at how his brain works.

She thought to start out with the simple stuff, introductions and all that, and then she thought she'd tell him a bit of her own life. How both her parents had died when she was young, how she'd been raised by her uncle, Dan, until he had been killed as well and how she'd become apprentice to Tsunade.

Sasuke could tell there was some information she wasn't sharing with him, but hey, this was his therapy session, not hers.

He supposed she just wanted to show him that she knew what losing your whole family feels like, what it can do to you.

He admired her, just a little, in his own twisted way for that.

"So, Sasuke, you killed your brother, Itachi, yes?"

"I suppose." He shrugs and looks out the window, or he trys to, but he's not allowed to, it's blacked out from his side.

"Why?" She asks, and moves forward a bit.

"Why not?" He looks at her once again and he can tell she's startled at his answer, though she trys not to show it.

.

Sasuke's Room.

Shizune.

.

This boy, he was something different.

Sure, Shizune had heard stories about the ever-so-popular Sasuke Uchiha, and she had seen a few Uchiha's in her days, before they'd all been killed by Sasuke's brother Itachi. She knew they were, mostly, antisocial, that they were proud and that they could conceal their emotions well, but this was something different.

She couldn't dent him, not in the slightest.

He had a weak spot, everyone does, if they know it or not isn't her problem. Her problem is finding Sasuke's weak spot and exploiting it, using it to get him to talk, to open up.

Using it to save him.

In some twisted way, this boy reminded her of herself, and although she was underqualified for this enormous job, (Ibiki would be good at this, even Sakura would be better than her when it came to this, she knew the Uchiha) Tsunade had picked her for the same reason she hadn't picked Ibiki or Sakura. They knew Sasuke.

Everyone qualified for this job knew the Uchiha, had known him since he was little. In Tsunade's opinion, that automatically made them unqualified, but she, she didn't know him.

She could break him.

.

Training Grounds.

Sakura.

.

Sakura was currently taking her anger out on a tree, this poor tree that would never flourish again when she was done with it.

She knew what she said to Kakashi was mean and hurtful and wrong, but she couldn't help it. It was like something inside of her just burst and exploded and all of a sudden she had become someone-something-she wasn't.

She let out a scream and tried to stop the tears flowing from her cheeks.

She knew she'd have to go appologize to him for all the mean, hurtful things she'd said to him, but she didn't want to. She really, really didn't want to.

It was the last thing on her list.

Right now, all she wanted to do was wallow in her gloom, coat herself with it.

"I think that poor tree is done for," His emotionless voice cut through her depression and she looked up at him, her face puffy, her eyes red and her tears still flowing.

He sat down and pulled her down with him.

"Talk."

She just shook her head; she couldn't get her words under control, not until she let this emotion out.

"Then fight."

It was simple, a command, and she followed it. She let her hair and her tears fly out as she aimed her fist and launched herself at her teammate.

.

Training Grounds.

Sai.

.

He'd seen Sakura sort of fly through the air in her anger. She soared over to a tree and started beating it like it was her worst enemy.

He'd sat on the floor, his paint brush still in his hand, the scroll he'd been drawing a bear on, teatering on his knees. He'd watched her spar with that tree, not noticing him.

His own feelings raged at her return. They'd all but forgotten about him since Sasuke'd returned, but his stupid feelings (sometimes he wondered if he wasn't better off when he was completely emotionless-brainwashed) wouldn't let him.

He considered her as his teammate, even if she didn't consider him as one.

Which is why he walked over to her and told her to talk, told her to fight him if she wasn't going to, it was why they ended up sparring for hours.

_Now it seems that they're all anyone can focus on…_

* * *

><p><em>I know, I kinda died for a while, but this is a pretty long chapter in my opinion, it's my appology gift? It's sad that I haven't updated this since I've had it basically all done for weeks now… Oops?<em>

_Anyway, who's got epic plans for Spring Break? I know I do!_


End file.
